Cash Crunch? GM Halts Portions Of HQ Rennovation Amid Sales Slow Down

Corporate offices should not be lavish in the first place. They should be basic and businesslike.

Prudent move. When I think of who GM is, I picture them as "every person's automobile" (though I am sure some people don't care for GM products). If they see themselves that way too, and they wish to be relatable with consumers who resonate with that image, then they should avoid ostentatious offices and treating their execs like royalty (private jets, etc.)

On the other hand, if you're a Rolls Royce or a Ferrari, and your products speak to the fabulously affluent clientele, then having spaces that reflect that ultra-luxury mindset makes perfect sense. It's no place for modesty when you're selling $300,000+ cars.

In my business life, I've observed the same thing over and over: The day that a company builds a lavish office is almost invariably the beginning of the end.

I don't know about American Car companies though.
Chrysler built the Chrysler Building in NYC just before its best times. The original GM office complex was also built just before GM regularly overtook Ford in sales - was started in 1919 - and was the second largest Office Building in the world at the time. It is now called the Cadillac offices and are used by the state of Michigan. ANd Ford built the Glass House in the 1950's as well.

Building iconic structures has been the hallmark of American Businesses over the decades - and while some of those companies no longer exist - or were taken over - the Buildings that most large companies are in have always been lavish - often Campus like settings. Businesses run in cycles - and products become obsolete - often taking their makers with them (A current example is Kodak) - but I doubt that building a lavish headquarters was the cause of their demise.

I would assume the LED wall faces a hwy and would get thousands (10's of thousands?) of views per day. Much better to own the media you are using then to pay someone else a fee for the same impressions.

Just think. They can show images of the Escala, Elmiraj, Ciel, Avenir, and Avista to remind people of the vehicles GM can design but won't build. Or maybe they can show images of what they make and how many thousands of dollars they have to put on the hood to get you to settle for a GM product.